Black And White Paints Grey
by my-grey-soul
Summary: Ginny Weasley is invited to play in the Quidditch World Cup. Although Voldermort has been defeated, many of his Death Eaters are still on the loose. They continue to gain power and want revenge on the former Order of the Pheonix: the Weasley family, Ginny in particular. As events unfold, Ginny's past catches up to her and it turns out she has kept many secrets and powers hidden.
1. Working Vacation

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Harry Potter series and/ or any of its characters.**

_**This entire story will be in third person POV.**_

"ANOTHER GOAL FOR WEASLEY! THE SCORE IS 280 TO 130 WITH THE HARPIES IN THE LEAD!"

The Harpies' fans roared in approval, while supporters of the Wiltshire Wasps grumbled in their seats and stared sullenly at the game.

"QUAFFLE GOES TO TAFT, PASSES TO NEIL AND—INTERCEPTED BY WEASLEY! GOES TO HARPER—OH! SHE TAKES A BLUGER TO THE SIDE, DROPS THE QUAFFLE. BUT FELLOW CHASER, WAGNER, SNATCHES IT!"

Ginny Weasley rushed forward to aid her teammate in steering the quaffle away from the opponents reach, but glanced up as something else caught her eye—the golden snitch. Although she was not in the position to claim it, she prayed to all things Merlin that the Harpy seeker would.

"IT LOOKS LIKE THE WASPS' SEEKER, TUNSHILL, HAS SPOTTED THE SNITCH! HE'S DIVING BUT HARPY SEEKER, BROOKS, IS GAINING SPEED!"

Ginny spared a second to analyze the spectacle before her. Yes, Brooks was gaining speed, but Tunshill was faster. It would be a miracle if Brooks succeeded. Then every moment slowed in Ginny eyes, her mind racing.

This was _the_ game. The game that determined who won first place in the league. The Harpies, although always coming close to claiming it had never had the honor of winning the title. Nonetheless, this was their chance to do so. If the Wasps caught the snitch now, both teams would automatically tie and be forced to share their victory.

Not if Ginny could help it. _This was their year, _she thought, _not anyone else's. _Snapping her attention back to the game, she pulled her focus on the traveling quaffle.

Speeding towards her fellow chaser, Wagner, her ears didn't even bother to process the announcer's words. In one swift pass, Ginny relieved Wagner of the and opponent players spiraled toward her, but they didn't stand a chance as she dodged them with a natural sense of skill.

She accelerated toward the goal post. The Wasp's keeper got into position. She aimed toward the right hoop, but feigned at the last second, hurling the quaffle through the left hoop and—

"WEASLEY SCORES!" Gasps rolled through the crowd. "TUNSHILL HAS CAUGHT THE SNITCH! THE HARPIES WIN 290 TO 280!"

Cheers erupted through the stadium and in the distance she could hear the Wasps begin curse at their loss. But all that was forgotten as Ginny felt the rest of her team envelope her into a bone- crushing hug.

Her hair was disheveled, her deep green robes were now damp with sweat, adrenaline was still spiking through her veins, and all she could think now was, _WE WON!_

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They had gone all out. The Harpies had decided to celebrate at their favorite pub and had basically taken over. Five of the twelve- women squad was on the dance floor, three were taking shots at one of the booths, and four, including Ginny, were dancing and singing in the middle of the bar.

The pub was dimly lit and the scent of alcohol mixed with a hint of sweat engulfed the senses. The Harpies had charmed a radio to cause the music to blare through, which went along with the mood. The place was completely packed even though many of the bar's patrons had left when the team had invaded. At the same time, many of the fans who had watched the game, tagged along to join in the after party, and were now trying valiantly to strike up a conversation with the team members. But they were in a daze considering the day's previous events.

For months the team had gone through strenuous, mind- numbing training, just to get a chance to make it to the finals. And when they did, it just got worse. It had gotten so bad that during the last month the team hadn't known which one they wanted more: to win the league or hit their captain, Gwenog Jones, over the head with one of the beater bats. Now that they had won, they were euphoric and a bit relieved that they were finally allowed to relax. They deserved it.

Ginny felt a hand tug on her shoulder and another hoist her up onto one of the tables. She found herself face to face with her teammate and roommate, Riley Bennings who, by her abnormal uncoordinated movements, she assumed was just as intoxicated as her. Next to Riley was Harpy beater, Leila Sayes, who was locking eyes with one of the male fans and smiling impishly. And at the very edge of the long rectangular table was Kaylee Wagner, looking like she was in her own sort of trance, not noticing she was about to fall off.

In the corner of the room Gwenog had disentangled herself from the dance floor with chaser, Abby Harper, to grab another drink from the bar. She raised an eyebrow at the four, but was too busy celebrating herself to say anything against it. And at the moment, Ginny was too drunk to care. So, instead she began to sway to the music.

She didn't even notice when her brother, Ronald Weasley, came storming in with his best mate, Harry Potter, trailing closely behind. However, they spotted her instantly. The two had heard over the radio that the Harpies' after party had gotten a little out of hand and since Ginny was known for her unpredictable actions, the two aurors didn't favor the idea of having to bail her out of jail the next day.

Now, Ron was watching in horror as his baby sister danced on one of the bar's tables, attracting many males' eyes.

"Harry…" No answer. Ron looked sideway s to Harry and realized his _best friend _was also staring hungrily at his_ little sister. _"_Harry…" _Still no answer—he eyes were traveling down her body_. _Ron sighed and elbowed his friend roughly in the ribs.

"_Hey!" _Harry, now irritated, snapped, "What was that for?"

"You can go, I'll take Ginny home."

"Are you sure? I could help."

Ron shot him a knowing look, "Well, mate, considering you were drooling a few seconds ago, no, I don't think you'd be much help." Although he looked abashed, Harry nodded and left. Ron proceeded toward Ginny.

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"Look at what I found!" Ron exclaimed, walking into the Burrow. The five other Weasley brothers were scattered around the family room. At Ron's voice they looked up and rested their eyes not on Ron, but the person he was desperately trying to hold up.

"_Ginny?"_

Ginny mumbled incoherently and as Ron tried setting her down into one of the armchairs, she instead slumped, face- down onto the ground, unmoving.

"Is she—"Charlie started.

"Pissed?" Fred contributed.

Ron nodded and joined the other five in eyeing their little sister, their _pissed _baby sister. None of them knew what to do. Out of curiosity, George leaned forward and poked the bundled mess. At his touch, Ginny sprung up, causing the others to jump back in their seats.

It was like she had never left the party.

She jumped onto the coffee table, danced over it, then skipped and twirled around the room, constantly stumbling because of her drunken stupor. All the while singing in a slurred tone of the Harpies' success, "weeeeeeee won! Weeeeeee 'on! 'e're on top of the weague! Weeeeeeeeee," she reached a glass- shattering high note and the brothers cringed.

The twins lit up as if Christmas had come early, "Oh, the things Ginny- kins gets up to when were not around," mused Fred, shaking his head.

She wobbled a bit, but when she caught sight of Bill, the one closest to her, her eyes flickered with recognition.

"Bill!"

"Hey, Gin- bug" he hesitated, unsure of what to say, "Are you…feeling okay?"

She nodded frantically which only succeeded in making her dizzy. She staggered back and Ron outstretched his arms in preparation to catch her. But she didn't need it. Just as quickly as she had woken up, she straightened herself up and grabbed Bill by the shoulders.

"Bill! D-did you 'ear! Did you 'ear! W-w-we won—the 'arpies won!"

"Oh, I heard," she began jumping again and started to make another round around the coffee table, "Um, how about you take a seat." He gently grasped her shoulders and led her towards the armchair that she had previously slid off of.

She continued fidgeting in her seat, unable to keep still. Percy gazed at her disapprovingly.

"You do understand, Ginevra, that excessive consumption of alcohol is not proper behavior. I must admit that I'm disappointed in you. And although some…" he looked pointedly at the twins, "other members of our family have proved disappointing; I expected more of you, especially considering that you are the only other member of the family to have the honor of earning the title of Head Girl/ Boy, other than Bill and myself."

Ginny groaned dramatically and threw her head back, "You can be _sooo _borin' sometimes, Perce."

"_Sometimes?" _Fred croaked through his stifled laughter, which only seemed to encourage Ginny to continue celebrating. Percy's face hardened and shot a glare toward his brother, however, it being Percy, he miraculously failed at pulling off anything near menacing. Instead his face morphed into an expression which looked much closer to one of dire constipation.

Noticing his demeanor George leaned forward and whispered rather loudly, "Need a laxative, Perce?"

The others laughed at the now confused Percy, but he simply shrugged it aside. With new determination, he faced Ginny who continued squirming in her seat.

"In regard to your prior statement, Ginevra, what you call boring, is actually success. Look at me for example, I've worked hard all my life and now I'm rewarded with the job that I currently hold: Undersecretary for the Minister of Magic."

She snorted, "_Daaad _is Minister o-of Magic. (Hiccup) Biiiiiig w-whoop, _Wheatherby._"

"No matter who is Minister of Magic, my job will continue to remain a respectable position."

She pursed her lips, tilted her head, and squinted at Percy. Even in her groggy state she proved capable of looking calculating. After a few moments of contemplation she came to the conclusion that, "You've never gotten laid, have (hiccup) you Perce?"

"I-I…er—well I…um," he sputtered as he listened in horror to the twins deafening guffaws of laughter and the others' chortling.

Ginny, bored of conversation, began skipping around the room once more, singing, 'We won, We won,' under her breath. It wasn't till she bent down to grab one of the bottles of firewhiskey from cabinet that her brothers intervened.

George, who was closest, gently guided her back into the armchair, "I think you've had enough, Ginny- kins."

Ginny pouted, "_B-but_ Forge—n-no Gred…Forge?" she kept swiveling her head between the twins, unsure of herself. Charlie sighed and stood up take his sister home.

"Come on, Gin- Gin, let's get you to bed."

Ginny turned to Charlie and did something that her brothers' had never seen her do before—she _giggled—_uncontrollably. Her right hand outstretched, pointing toward Charlie and the other clutching her vibrating stomach. They didn't know what to do. "Is everything okay?"

More giggling, "There's _t-t-two_ of you C-Charlie."

"Um, okay." Just as suddenly as the giggling had started, it came to a stop.

Then she fell back into Ron's outstretched arms, unconscious.

"I didn't even know she could drink."

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Ginny woke up to the wondrous sensation of a knife stabbing her brain. Clutching her head, she waited for the pain to pass. When the room stopped spinning, she groggily made her way out of the bedroom. Although the room was not her own, it was definitely familiar: Fred and George's guest room.

She caught sight of three redheads at the kitchen table and noticed a fourth spot set with a breakfast plate and goblet. Without any grace whatsoever, she slumped into the fourth seat, between the twins and across from Charlie.

"Good morning, Ginny- kins!" Fred shouted into her ear.

Swatting him away valiantly, she groaned and promptly cradled her head into her arms. Eventually her eyes traveled back up to her brothers.

Charlie had recently decided to move back to England. The dragon reserve that he had previously worked at in Romania was building another in England, due to the fact that dragon births seemed to be on a rise, much to Charlie's delight. There hadn't been close to enough room at the prior reserve, so when Charlie had suggested the English countryside he was promoted to manager of the new reserve.

But till he was able to find a flat in England close enough to work, he was stuck living with the twins in the flat above their joke shop. Although living with them implied having to always 'expect the unexpected' and walk cautiously (to avoid playing the part of 'product tester'), it was a skill that all Weasely had gained growing up with the twins. Nonetheless, Charlie was excited to be back home.

"Hangover potion," said George pointing to the goblet. Ginny sent him a grateful look and gulped down the potion. Immediately feeling revived strength, she dug into the plateful of food with new- found vigor.

"Better?" Charlie chuckled looking at his sister's face which was stuffed with eggs. She nodded and focused back on the food. Eggs—yum. Sausage—yum. Muffin—yum. Unidentified pill hidden in her muffin—no thank you.

She swiftly picked out the pill and tossed it. She shot a glare towards the twins who look back sheepishly. "It was worth a try; Charlie keeps refusing to test it."

"With good reason," remarked Charlie.

Ginny rolled her eyes but froze when she realized that she didn't remember anything that had gone on last night. "Hey, I didn't do anything…weird last night, right?"

"No, "but the amused look that the twins exchanged said differently. Still perplexed, she tried remembering the night before. Her eyes widened.

"The Harpies—_we won!_ We—"

"We know," they said in unison.

"Oh"

The twins were grinning broadly now and she had no clue why. George opened his mouth to say something but Charlie hastily shut him up with a warning glare. _What happened last night?_

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Ginny said goodbye to the three of them and apparated to her flat. Only to find her roommate passed out on the couch, completely wasted. Time and time again she had fallen in love with her flat. It was the perfect size really, not too small, not too big. The walls had been painted a faint yellow that gave off a quaint, comforting feel. Plus the hundreds of pictures of both Ginny's and Riley's friends and families that partly covered the walls made every guest feel welcome. To top it out, both girls had a modern style taste in furniture, which gave the flat a sleek finishing to it. The décor sounded contradicting, but in the end it worked and to the two roommates it was home sweet home.

"Riley," she shook her, "… _Riley!" _

"Hmmm…urg—what?"

"It's past noon, time to get up," Riley reluctantly sat up, but straightaway grabbed her head. "Here's some Hangover potion," Ginny said gently, handing her some left over potion from the twins.

"Thanks, Gin." Ginny nodded. "You stink, by the way."

"So do you."

She entered her bedroom, picked out some fresh cloths, undressed, and stepped into the shower. The hot water stung her body, but instantly woke her up from her former dazed state. However, this extraordinary feeling was short lived when she heard the poundings of a fist on her shower door, courtesy of Riley.

"What?" Not really caring that she sounded whiny.

"Get out here, _now!"_

Ginny heard her leave and she groaned. Shutting off the water she decided that she hated—no despised her roommate at this point for ripping her of such an amazing sensation. _Why do I live with her? Oh, yeah, because she's my best friend._ Then made a mental note, _I need a new best friend—maybe Hermione. _She wrapped herself in a towel and walked into living room where Riley was waiting for her.

Interestingly enough Riley didn't look tired at all anymore, no she looked awake—not just that, but hyper and excited. Riley non- so-gently shoved a piece of parchment to Ginny, "Read," she commanded then ran—no _bounced _to her own room.

She realized it was from the stack of mail that had been building up for the past week. Perplexed, Ginny scanned the piece of parchment and felt her heart beat start to race.

_Dear Ms. Weasely, _

_We are honored to announce that after watching multiple of your games we have decided that your performance is ideal for a main team chaser for the England National Quidditch Team…_

She was in shock.

She re-read the letter again and still couldn't believe it. She had made the national team. She wouldn't just be playing for the Harpies this time, but instead England. She'd be playing for all of England.

The idea of it was definitely appealing to her. Already she could visualize flying in some of the Wizarding world's largest stadiums, the crowd more packed than she could ever have imagined. She would feel exhilarated, her adrenaline would spike like it never had before, but most importantly, even with the pressure of the World Cup, she would feel free. It was the main reason that she had became a quidditch player, and, to her, the most important aspect of her career. Of course she loved to win, but the main idea was to feel free. Flying was the only thing that enabled her to completely let herself go and basically leave the rest of the world behind, along with her worries. It was what kept determined to keep fighting during the war and sane after.

Oh, yes, she would feel free, and while millions, maybe billions of wizards and witches around the world watched or tuned in to listen. _Oh, sweet Merlin, _she out of her daydreaming, she noticed Riley running past her with a fresh pair of cloths in her arms.

"_Riley," _she cried, stopping her, "did you get one of them too," gesturing to the parchment.

Riley grinned, "Yep, I got on the reserve squad though, not the main team like you. But still—_we both made the team!" _She jumped a few times. "Now hurry up, we _have _to get going!"

"For what?" She didn't remember anything planned for today.

Riley look at her incredulously, _"Did you even read it?"_

"Of course I did."

"Read the second to last sentence again."

Ginny read aloud, "_The entire squad will have a mandatory meeting on June 12__th__ at 1:00 pm to go over general information such as contracts, training schedules, dates of games, and mandatory events," _then look back up at Riley, "So?"

Riley sighed then spoke exasperated as if to a child, "Ginny, what day is it today?"

She thought for a moment, "Um, June 12th—_Oh_, what time is it?"

"12:52, we've got 8 minutes and I still reek; I need a shower!" _Sod the shower! _She mentally cried, but as she leaned forward and sniffed in Riley's direction, she immediately gave in.

"Okay, let's hurry."

"Wait, do we even know where were going?"

_I am _not_ going to be kicked off the team after ten minutes of being on it._

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**12:59 pm**

"Coach, can we start? Is everyone here?" asked one of the 18 men who were seated around the long rectangular table. The coach looked down at his clipboard which held a list of names.

"No, not yet, we're still waiting for two others: one of the main team chasers and the other reserve—"

The door burst open.

Ginny and Riley poured out and immediately dropped into the two closest available seats. Ginny peered up to the clock placed on the wall across from her and silently cheered. O_ne minute to spare._

She put her attention on the one person who was standing, who she assumed was the coach, and noticed that his eyes were swiveling between her and Riley. His gaze latched onto Riley's and he cocked an eyebrow, "May I ask, _why _are you dripping water onto _my _floor?"

Riley's eyes traveled to her hair and so did Ginny's—they were soaking wet. Riley had started to stutter, not knowing how to explain what had happened in the past ten minutes. "I—we…um, kind of…" Ginny couldn't blame her. It was hard telling a person that you'd just met how you had just caused your shower to explode while you were in it and when your brave, courageous roommate had attempted to save your ass, she had instead also been sprayed haphazardly by the bursting pipe and fallen next to you in defeat on the flooding bathroom floor.

So Ginny cast a dry spell on her own hair and helped her out. "Plumbing problem," she volunteered. When the coach turned his head to look at her, she cast another drying spell under the table toward Riley.

"_Plumbing problem?_"

"Plumbing problem," Riley restated firmly.

It was obvious he didn't believe them. But now that they were no longer dripping on his floor, he didn't particularly care. So, instead he just settled it with a simple, "Don't let it happen again." They nodded.

Ginny leaned back in her chair and scanned the faces of her soon- to- be fellow teammates. This made her conscious of three things. One, there were exactly twenty members on the squad. Two, other than Riley and herself, they were all men. Three, they were all staring directly at her.

She had never really understood it, but to others she was found easily attractive. Her hair was, unlike her brothers' reddish- orange, deep burgundy, yet still bright enough to be considered a flaming red. Her hazel brown eyes were said to be startling due to the hint of liquid gold they retained and her face was dusted with an appealing light layer of freckles. Thanks to quidditch she had gained both a slim and evenly tanned figure. Over the years she had filled out quite nicely and held enough curves to win her more than a few second glances from passerby.

But when faced with situations like this (having over a dozen men leering at her) she simply mistook it as a misunderstanding on her part and chose to ignore it. The coach cleared his throat to begin.

"Now that everyone's here we can go ahead and start." He announced in a low, gruff voice. He was a in his late thirties it looked like, no older than forty. His face was hard set, with a sharp and angular bone structure. He was fit, that was for sure. But that could also be said for every male in the room.

Their quidditch toned bodies were wrapped with muscle, some more than others. About seven of them could described as extra burly, while the others saved a lean figure. Basically, they could all be described as 'better than good- looking'.

But the most important thing that Ginny noticed, with irritation, was that that all had around a good hundred pounds more that her and Riley. The two of them were shorter, slimmer, and smaller with muscles much less defined. (But that didn't mean they weren't strong.)

Many men who played quidditch thought size was a great contributor. Truthfully, it was a good strength, because it allowed them to take a hit from a bludger or opponent flier without falling off their broom. This made some believe that woman couldn't handle a rough game.

That was another reason why the Harpies winning of first place had been such an accomplishment—they had proved them wrong.

Almost a century ago was when the Holyhead Harpies where formed, the first all- women squad (and still the only). No one had really thought much about them at the time, except that they were kidding themselves. Over time, however, they had gradually gained the respect for their impressive skill and legendary strategy. Now, they were on top of the league. _Finally, _thought Ginny.

"First, congratulations on making the team. Being on this team means that you are one of the best players in England, but it does not mean that you can slack off. In fact if you do, then you'll be kicked out faster than you can say 'World Cup'." He gaze flicked from face to face as if daring someone to speak up.

"My name is Nigel Moore and I'll be your coach. You will address me as 'coach' and nothing else, understood?" Everyone nodded. "You must also understand that you are playing for England now, not your former team. During the year you have all been going up against each other—that stops now," he paused. "Since you'll all be training together it's a good idea to get each other's names memorized. So one by one I want you to state your name, inner league team, and position that you'll play for this squad." He pointed to the man on his right, "You start."

"Rayden Boone, Chudley Cannons, main team chaser." Then the next person went.

"Sean Morgan, Wiltshire Wasps, main team keeper." Ginny sat up at the mention of the team name. Looking closer she recognized the man as the keeper that she had played against yesterday. She was surprised to say the least. She remembered at the beginning of the match he had been able to block a few quaffles, but as the game progressed, Ginny had picked up on his weakness and found it easy enough to score.

She also noticed his chocolate brown eyes swivel to her for a second, glinting with fury. She realized that he must blame her for the Wasps' loss. If it hadn't been for that last goal right before Tunshill had caught the snitch, the two teams would be sharing a trophy. Instead, the Wasps had made it all the way to the finals and received nothing in return. She made a mental note to be wary around him, there was no telling how big of a sore- loser he was.

Two more men went and then it was her turn. "Ginny Weasely, Holyhead Harpies, main team chaser."

She was not under any illusion that she would easily be accepted by the rest of the team. But the looks she was getting from them irritated her to no end. It was obvious they thought she didn't belong there. In fact their facial expressions basically implied that they were mentally scoffing at the idea. _Sexist pigs, _she thought.

Riley received the same treatment when she introduced herself. From across the table the two locked eyes with each other. Their gazes held the same mixture of fury, irritation, and most importantly determination. They would prove that they belonged on this team no matter what.

Then, something snapped her out of her ravine.

"Draco Malfoy, Pride of Portree, main team seeker."

**REVIEW! **

**This is the Holyhead Harpies' rooster you can use for reference if you want (not really important—I just liked making up the names):**

**Gwenog Jones—beater**

**Leila Sayes—beater**

**Abby Harper—chaser**

**Ginny Weasely—chaser **

**Kaylee Wagner—chaser **

**Riley Bennings—keeper **

**Leslie Brooks—seeker **


	2. Chasing Stability

Being careful to stay clear of the kitchen area where her mother was preparing dinner, she slide into the closed off quaint little family room. There, as expected she found her father and all six of her bothers drinking Butterbeer.

Ever since their mother had become insistent that the entire family gathered for Sunday dinner, it had become a tradition for them to meet in the family room and have a mild drink before dinner. Although her mother, Fleur, Hermione, Penelope, or any of her brothers' girlfriends never joined them it had nothing to do with gender. Just the simple fact that they weren't eager to help with the cooking while the others were.

Call it lazy, but that wasn't the main reason they did it. The main reason she looked forward to these meetings was because there were just some things that shouldn't be heard by Molly, or Hermione, or Fleur, or Penelope Weasley. Although she loved the four women, these meetings allowed her to talk to her family without getting scolded.

Usually they would talk about their jobs. And it wasn't nearly as boring as one might expect. Every person in the family had been rewarded with a job they loved and these jobs usually included adventure, danger, and humor (with the exception of Percy). Although they had fun talking about work, the 'danger factor' made it a forbidden topic at the dinner table.

It was also the reason why Mrs. Weasley had nearly fainted when told her youngest and only daughter had chosen Quidditch as a career. In fact she would still hound Ginny with different scenarios in which a simple match could become fatal.

'What if one of those bludgers hits you on the head and you fall a hundred feet, but you're already dead before you hit the ground, because as it turns out the bludger had already cracked your skull in half. What are you going to say then, dear?' At this remark and other hundred similar to it, Ginny had simply promised to be careful and left the room before her mother could continue.

She silently closed the door behind her and nodded to her brothers. Her father gave her a welcoming hug and proceeded to pour her a Butterbeer. The twins scooted over to give her a spot on the couch. However, she remained standing, looking ready to burst with her good news.

Mr. Weasley smiled tenderly at his daughter, "Something you want to tell us, sweetheart?"

The brothers leaned forward in interest. Ginny had the most active life in her family; therefore she usually had the most exciting news or stories to tell each weekend. Her restless spirit was more extreme than anyone else in the family. Even with quidditch taking up a majority of her schedule she still somehow found plenty of time to travel. Usually it was random and a spur of the moment action. Since she rarely planned anything she normally would have tales of adventures to bring home and they would all get a kick out of it. The Weasley men adored Ginny and were amazed at her broad outlook on life. It made them proud that, if anything, they had done right with their youngest.

She met her father's encouraging gaze and smiled broadly. "Okay, well first I just want to tell you that the Harpies won first—"

"We know," her brothers said in unison. Ginny frowned, _what happened last night? _All she knew was that she had gotten drunk and her brothers had been nice enough to take her in for the night. _Or had they laughed at me? _She saw the twins exchange whispers and then snickered. _They laughed at me! _She huffed angrily.

Brushing that thought away, her smile returned. "Well anyway that's not what this is about. Do you all remember how we all planned to take a day off and go watch a game together as a family at the world cup this summer?"

They nodded and Charlie's eyebrows scrunched together. Percy had the decency to feign interest in the conversation, although he had already excused himself from the trip. "Well I found out I can't go with you guys." Then as expected there was an immediate chorus of 'What!' and 'Why not'.

"Did you get banned from _another_ country?" demanded Ron, who looked ready to inform Mrs. Weasley.

"No! And for your information Ronald, I have never been banned from a _country, _just Amsterdam, which is a _city." _She really did not want to go over this, _again. _

"You're not exactly helping your case, Gin" It was bad enough when he first had started his auror training that he had begun reading her, her rights. Now that he had graduated he flashed a disapproving glace that could match one of Molly Weasley, whenever her infamous let's-sod-the-rules-and-celebrate-behavior acted up. _And he used to be so fun, _she remembered, _pity_.

"Can I please continue?" Ron made a dramatic 'as you may' gesture, but Ginny accepted it. "Now as I was saying, I can't go with you guys, but I will be there. And I won't be in the stands watching either…"

They contemplated this for a moment. Then Bill's eyes widened and her father sent her a knowing look. Fred made a show of smacking his forehead with his palm to display his understanding. He then grasped onto George's shoulder and the two looked at each other with widened eyes.

"Alas! Do my ears deceive me, Forge? Is our little depraved miscreant of a sister…"

"Good golly, Gred, I think you have it!"

"I can't believe it our ickle Ginny- kins—"

"Made it on the England Nation Quidditch team!" they cried in unison, getting up from their seats. Then gave her a bear bug from both sides, so she was sandwiched between them, cutting off her air supply.

"_Wicked…" _breathed Ron. She hadn't heard him say that since her first year of Hogwarts, and was quite proud to be the one to put that word back in his mouth.

"I bet you'll be the best reserve they have, Gin." Bill predicted and then also gave her a hug, shoving the wins out of the way.

"He's right, Gin, there's bound to be at least one match that you'll get to participate in." Charlie chimed in and the others nodded in agreement.

Ginny pulled away, "Reserve? You wound me brother dears." They gaped at her, not willing to believe their ears.

"Wait…you mean that you made the main team. No way…" Charlie whispered loudly, sounding astonished.

Ginny clasped her hands over her heart and exhaled loudly. "And you wound me again. First you assume I'm a reserve and now you say that there isn't any way I made the main team." She sighed sarcastically. "Oh ye of little faith! Is there anyone in this family who believes in me?"

"We do! We always knew you had it in you!" George cried.

"Yeah, we took you under our wing! We were the ones that saw the potential bottle up inside of you!" The 'took you under our wing' referred to the summer after the war which she spent working at their shop, where they had taught her the art of pranking and how to master it. The truth was that she was already a master. The difference between her and the twins when it came to pranks is that she was never caught.

When she had become a quidditch player, they had even said that they were the ones to teach her how to fly. Claiming she had learned by watching _them_ fly during their days on the Gryffindor team. She had actually learned to fly at age six when she figured out how to pick the broom shed lock without using magic. Between the ages of six and eleven she'd wake up every morning at half past five to take turns stealing her brothers' brooms and practicing till six. Not that she would ever tell her family that. By the time her mother woke up to start breakfast she would be back in her bed, feigning being asleep, and no one suspected anything more from their could-do-no-harm angel of the family.

"Dinner!" Mrs. Weasley announced from the kitchen. They congratulated her again and filed out to the kitchen table. Percy was the last of her brothers to leave, but before he did he told her, "I may not be as interested in quidditch as the rest of you, but I am happy for you, Gine—" he saw her warning glare, "Ginny."

She beamed at him, "Thanks, Perce." Up until then he had been silent. It meant a lot to her to hear those words from Percy. She knew he didn't think much of quidditch but it was good to know that he didn't think little of _her_.

Percy exited the room and she was left alone with her father. He hugged her. "I'm proud of you, Goose." _Goose, _it was a nickname that her father had given her when she was five when it became apparent that she was obsessed with geese. She would watch them, chase them, and even act like them.

"Now you have to tell your mother," he said with amusement. She groaned into his shirt.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXX**

Her mother had taken it better than she had expected. Three years ago when she had told her that she was joining the Harpies' squad, Molly had gone berserk. She had wailed that after all she'd done to raise seven children they were and wanted to leave her. This was untrue since Ginny had technically already moved out of the Burrow and into her London flat with Riley. So she wasn't leaving in any way at the time. However, when she voiced these thoughts, her mother had decided this was worse because it was as if she was leaving a second time. Then, she went on to complain how all her children's different lifestyles could be described as suicidal and accident prone.

Coincidentally this had all taken place during a family dinner, so all the Weasleys were present which gave Molly a chance to pick at each of her children individually. As she babbled on, she accused the twins of striving to give her a heart attack because of the constant missions they'd like to take on to help the Order apprehend Death Eaters that had fled after the war. She demanded that Charlie get a hair cut before one of his precious dragons burnt it off for him. She threatened to rip out Bill's 'silly' fang earring if he did not do so himself. And went on to inquire that if she apparently had seven adult offspring, then why had she only seen evidence of one grandchild so far? All the while directing her words to Bill, who at the time, was the only one married out of the seven. Poor Bill was even forced to disarm his own wife, after Fleur had attempted to hex Molly. She questioned Ron on why she was still not technically allowed to call Hermione her daughter-in-law and even wanted to know a wedding date. Ron had gone beet red, choked on his water, and mumbled an almost inaudible 'no' into his soup while Hermione had ducked behind her hands to conceal the obvious blush creeping up on her cheeks.

Her hysteria finally diminished when she reached Percy. She praised him for his smarts on getting a desk job instead of indulging in 'parlous' and 'most likely fatal' jobs like his 'rash' siblings. They had taken the compliment as a sign that she was calming down, but to no avail, she began again and _advised _Percy that he should find a _nice_ girl to settle down with. In the end, it had taken a calming draught and a promise to have a family dinner every Sunday to ease Molly into acceptance.

This time it had gone much better. She simply waited and helped her mother to finish setting the plates on the table, making sure that Molly wouldn't have anything in her hands that could fall, break, or be thrown when given the news. Fortunately, this hadn't been necessary. Once her mother's hands were empty and after she complemented her on what an amazing dinner it looked like, Ginny casually let it slip she'd be playing at the World Cup.

Molly had been at a loss of words for a few moments and Ginny knew that she was thinking back to three years ago. Thankfully, she didn't want a repeat performance either. Ginny felt relieved as her mother smiled with clenched teeth and gritted out, "Congratulations, dear." It didn't sound like much, but Ginny knew her mother wasn't angry with her, just plain worried. They had also come to a silent agreement that as long as Ginny was happy, her mother would be happy for her. "Now let's get some food in you, you're much too thin."

Ginny mentally rolled her eyes, no matter how much she ate, it would never be enough. Walking back to her seat at the table, she recognized one normally filled seat remain empty. Her mother had noticed it too.

"Ron?" Ron lifted his sausage- stuffed face to look at his mother expectantly. Ginny noted that his overfilled face held an uncanny resemblance to that of a puffer fish. His eating habits, she mused, were like thestrals' as they ripped apart bloody meat for a meal. With their skeleton body, their food would simply stick out of their mouths as they chewed.

"For heaven's sake Ronald, chew your food! Don't inhale it." Hermione berated him and Molly mouthed the words 'thank you' to her. Ron looked irritated, still with half a sausage sticking out of his mouth.

Her mother continued, "I was wondering where Harry was. Do you know, Ron?"

Ron shrugged, "sd' hmit' beilt'laet," he swallowed, "He said he might be a little late." Then Ron turned to Ginny, "Gin, since you're playing _in _the World Cup, does that mean we get better seats?"

In the corner of her eye Ginny saw her mother purse her lips and her father lean toward the cabinet where they kept the calming draught. _Forbidden topics at the dinner table, _she tried telling Ron with a discreet shake of her head to drop it, but as always, he remained oblivious. She replied and stated the obvious, "Dad is the Minister of Magic, we already have the minister's box—we _can't_ get better seats."

Before anything else could be said, the front door opened and in came Harry with four-year-old Teddy Lupin behind him. "AUNTIE GINNY!" Teddy screamed and barreled into his aunt's arms. After Teddy's parents had been killed in the war, his grandmother Andromeda had taken him in. But also since Harry had been named the boy's godfather, Harry would take care of Teddy on weekends, allowing his aging grandmother to get some rest.

Teddy loved the Weasley's Sunday dinners because he got the chance to see Ginny and talk to his best friend, Victoire, Fleur and Bill's daughter who was only a few months younger than him. Ted, who had taken after his mother, had chosen the flaming Weasley red-hair and sapphire sharp eyes for today. Ginny chuckled at the young boy's enthusiasm, "Nice to see you too Ted, how's the broom working out for you?"

His four _and a half _year mark had been about three weeks ago and he demanded that they celebrate, so Ginny had got him a new toy broom. He was still too young for a regular broom and even though it was a _toy _broom he was still able to fly about three feet off the ground. His old one had only been able to go up two feet and when he had crashed and broken it, the poor boy had been devastated. With the new and improved broom, Teddy was flying every day and Ginny was certain that there was some quidditch skill in him.

"I love it!" She watched as his eyes sparkled, then his face fall into a pout, "But I want to go higher! Like you." Giving her an adorable 'poor puppy dog' look to persuade her, but she knew better. She had taught him this and other ways to win over adults.

She shook her head, "I'm sorry, Ted, not yet." He looked sullenly to the floor. "But I promise the second that you turn five, you and I will go to Diagon Alley and get you a broom that can go as high as you want." That plastered a smile back on his face and he sped off to find Victoire.

She smiled and looked up, only to lock eyes with Harry. He had been leaning against the wall just a few feet away and had listened to the whole exchange, smiling softly. She felt her own smile drop at the intensity of his gaze and hurriedly got up from her crouched position back into her seat.

During dinner she talked with Hermione and learned that her fight for elf rights was going rather well. After the war Hermione had finished up her seventh year at Hogwarts with Ginny while Harry and Ron had decided to take the offer of starting auror training early. She currently held the position as Head of the Department of Laws and Regulations of Magical Creatures. For the past year she had been building a campaign to free all house and service elves. However, since there was only a rare amount of elves already freed, it would be enacting a change in an entire species. Many wizards and witches were against it, so were most house elves since they didn't know what else to do but serve. Although according to Hermione, many house elves were changing their minds after learning the story of Dobby, the free house elf, who could _freely and happily _serve whoever he wanted instead of owned.

When dinner was over Ginny realized that Harry was trying to get her attention so they could talk privately. Even though it seemed cowardly, she was in no mood to talk to Harry and instead insisted that she help her mom with the dishes.

Once the dishes were done, she noticed that Harry was now deep in conversation with her brothers and father. But instead of their normal cheery banter, their faces reflected that of a gravely serious situation. Their tones were hushed. Ginny wondered what there was to whisper about when they were surrounded solely by family. What was even more surprising was when the group entered the family room and securely shut the door behind them; she could also tell that they had put a _silencio _charm on the door so no one else would be able to hear their voices from outside the room. Her mother was now asking Fleur how her pregnancy was going and Hermione was having an animated conversation with Penelope, so no one noticed her absence.

She crept up the rickety staircase and opened the latch of the trapdoor leading to the attic. Their pajama dressed goul was snoring loudly in the corner. Making sure not to wake him, she tiptoed over to the room's air vent. As usual, she found the screws loose and easily took off its border. Reaching in, she felt her fingertips brush up against a string- like object.

It was one of the twin's Extendable Ears. She had put this here when she was fourteen. It was right about the time when the Order was resurrected and as a result she wasn't included in many conversations taking place in her own home. To fix this she had connected the family room to the attic with the Extendable Ears which had enabled her to overhear many of the Order's meetings. Since the Extendable were technically also _in _the family room, a _silencio _charm wouldn't do anything to block the sound.

She lightly tugged the end of the string to her ear and listened.

"…_more than we thought." _

"_Does the Order have any ideas on how to deal with it?"_

"_I just don't understand why they would want—"_

"AUNTIE GINNY!" Ginny immediately dropped the string, shoved it back into the vent and scrambled up. "_Auntie Ginny! _Vicky got a hurts!"

"Why did you come all the way up here? You could've gone to Vicky's mom or grandma for help, they're just downstairs."

"But you get rid of the hurts the best, Auntie Ginny!" Victoire nodded along with Teddy. Although she regretted not being able to hear the rest of the groups' conversation, she resolved this with the intent of grilling one of her brothers about it later.

"Of course, where does it hurt Vic?"

"_Here!" _The almost four year old pointed to her outstretched hand and Ginny took it into her own for inspection. It was a small thin cut on her index finger, but still deeper than a paper cut. She pulled out her wand from her pocket and raised it to the cut, but Teddy stopped her.

"NO! Not like _that_—the other way—_your_ way."

"But this way is easier." The two looked at her expectantly.

Ginny hesitated. "You haven't told your uncles about…_my _way," she narrowed her eyes, "have you?"

They shook their heads. "_Will _you tell _someone_?" They shook their heads. Ginny looked into their wide, innocent eyes that plead for her trust. She sighed.

Clamping her eyelids shut, she summoned tears and forced her eyes to water. When she opened her eyelids they were brimmed with not just salty, but sweet liquid. She angled her eye to hover over the small girl's finger and then aimed one lone tear to fall smack dab on the cut. Instantly the cut closed and no trace of it ever having been there was left.

The tear itself had also vanished with the cut and Victoire's finger appeared unblemished.

"Better?"

"Loads!" Victoire and Teddy shared a glance, and then looked back at Ginny. "We were wondering…auntie Ginny, if…you could show us that other thingy—like last time."

"We won't tell," Teddy hastily added.

Ginny sighed, but did so. She had already showed them once so there wasn't any harm in showing them again if they already knew.

She opened her hand and with ease, summoned a flame to erupt from the center of her palm. The fire, as small as a candle flame, danced over her hand, never scorching her skin. Ginny realized that the kids weren't satisfied and had anticipated more, so she changed this. She allowed the fire within her to pour out and fully engulf her body. The flames licked at her skin and seemed to cover every inch of her. She felt pleased when the two's faces turned to expressions of awe and delight.

Victoire giggled and reached out to finger the glowing flames. Ginny, who was able to control the fire, including its temperature, made it so that it would only feel warm to someone else who touched it, instead of it being able to burn another's flesh. Either way, Ginny didn't feel the fire. It came from within her; she could control it and tell that it was there, but she herself never felt its temperature, much less was burnt by it.

Then the attic's trapdoor opened. "_Ginny!_"

_Shit! _The flames vanished. She could tell immediately from the voice that it was Harry and assumed that the meeting had been adjourned. Although she wished that it was anyone else, she was relieved that he hadn't seen anything.

"Yeah?"

"Hey, Gin." He pulled himself through the trapdoor and peered at them, "…What are the three of you doing up here?"

"I was just telling them the story of how Fred and George charmed that toy dragon to chase Charlie on his birthday."She lied easily and true to their word, the two played along.

"Is it true that he still has a bite mark from the dragon on his bum?" asked Teddy.

"And that one side of his bum is darker that the other because he got burned?" Victoire wondered since having heard the story before.

"Um…" It was obvious that Harry wanted to talk to Ginny without the other two. "I don't know. How about you two ask Charlie, maybe he'll show you his bum."

Now they truly looked excited. "_Thanks, Uncle Harry_!" they shouted, running downstairs "_Oh, Uncle Charlie!" Poor Charlie._

"Gin?" She could tell that he was fighting the urge to fidget. "So…Ron told me that you're playing in the World Cup, congratulations."

"Thanks. I know I've been playing for the Harpies for three years already, but playing for England…it's definitely going to be different. I can't wait for the first game; though, I will have to prove myself to the team first. And that's not going to be easy, I shouldn't judge after just meeting them, but I can tell that some of them are going to be sexist towards—"

"Are they giving you trouble, because I could always talk—"

"No! No—I can take care of myself, Harry," she looked at him pointedly, "you should know that."

"Yeah, I know that Gin," the fact that he said it _without_ sincerity made her blood boil, "just tell me if someone is giving you hard time, I can help."

She sighed. Proving herself to the new team would be a challenge, but proving herself to her _family _was nearly impossible. No matter how old she got, or how many grandchildren there were, or how tough she was on a broom, or how many people she hexed, her family would always think of her as the baby.

She didn't want to fight with Harry _again_ over this, but she did want something answered.

"What were you talking about with my brothers and dad? What was with the whispering behind locked doors and casting a _silencio _charm about, just a few minutes ago?"

He looked surprised at my observation. _It is bad enough that they think I can't take care of myself, but do they really think I'm not observant? I'm a quidditch player for Merlin's sake—if you're not observant you end up with a bludger to the head. And for me that has only happened once…or twice—minimum…and that's only to the _head_. So maybe I did get hurt a lot—but that doesn't mean I'm not observant!_

"Nothing," he shrugged, "don't worry about it, Ginny." But from what she heard through the vent, she knew it was anything but nothing. Before she could disagree he continued. "Actually Ginny, the reason I wanted to talk to you was because…I think we made a mistake breaking up."

She knew he was going to ask if they could get back together; that he thought it be best for them to give a relationship another chance. He'd been hinting about it for a while now. But she didn't want to have this conversation now.

"We've already broken up twice."

"And I don't even remember why we did, do you?" _Yes!_

"Yes, because—" There were so many reasons that she didn't know how to put them into words. Plus, she didn't want to hurt him again. She may not be _in_ love with him, but she did love him like family.

He misunderstood her hesitation. "See! You don't even remember either! Just give us another chance, Gin, remember how happy we used to be—"

"I wasn't happy, Harry," she stated quietly.

"What?"

"I wasn't happy. You didn't treat me like an equal when we were dating. You made decisions that I should have had a say in, like our first breakup when you left to 'protect' me. When it came to the war you acted just like the rest of my family and insisted on shielding me from it, do you have any idea how insulting it felt. _You_ hate being left in the dark, you should understand that. When the final battle you even voted, like brothers, to keep me locked in Room of Requirement, away from the fight."

"Gin, I've always respected you—"

"This isn't about _respect, _"she knew that she wasn't getting the message across, "what were you and my brothers talking about earlier?"

"I told you, you don't have to worry—" But she didn't want to hear it.

"Does it have to do with the Order?"

He paused. "Yes, exactly why you don't have—"

"'to worry about it', I know, but Harry, I _want_ to worry about it. I _want_ to help—be part of the Order. And you can't say that I'm too young, I'm way past 'of-age' damn it!"

"Gin, where is this all coming from?"

The words made the fire within her churn in irritation, begging to be let loose and wreck havoc for a release. But instead she held it in, took a deep breath, and gave her ultimatum.

"Would you be able to trust me with Order information and believe that I could handle it?"

"No, Ginny I'm sorry, but—"

"No, Harry, _I'm _sorry." She left without a goodbye.

**I know that the 'tears' and the 'fire' part were confusing but IT WILL BE EXPLAINED IN LATER CHAPTERS! (Ginny's character and past will ALSO be explained as the story progresses) **

**The first two chapters were short compared to the amount I normally write. This chapter is a lot longer and will be about the size of the rest. (I might just combine the first two chapters later to make one big first chapter—so don't be surprised if I do)**

**PREVIEW: Next chapter is the team's first practice session. (Think it's interesting?—become a follower!)**

**ANY THOUGHTS?—REVIEW! **


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